Naruto: Kurotsuchi Mayuri

"Prepare to retreat! Explosion Corps, stay with me and hold them off!" The Iwagakure leader Garited commands, snapping his fearful subordinates back to focus.

Rocks poured from his wide-open mouth, flowing along the earthen walls like a stream. A massive rock giant quickly took shape under his tremendous chakra output.

Earth Style: Super Hardening Technique!

A clay giant, no smaller than Akimichi Chodai in size, rose from the ground. The Iwagakure leader stood on the giant's neck and Garilders, controlling it.

Ohhh!

The two giants closed the distance in just a few strides, their fists clashing with raw, unrelenting force.

The clay giant displayed astonishing defensive and regenerative abilities under Akimichi Chodai's attacks. As long as the user's chakra remained steady, the giant could regenerate endlessly.

At the same time, its strength was incredible. Although it wasn't quite on par with Akimichi Chodai's current power, it could still hold its ground, trading punch for punch in an even match.

However, both Akimichi Chodai's Super Multi-Size Technique and the Iwagakure leader's Super Hardening Technique were extraordinarily chakra-intensive jutsu.

Though Akimichi Chodai hailed from the Akimichi Clan, renowned for their vast chakra reserves, he could not have maintained his Super Multi-Size Technique for long without activating his Hogyoku Mode.

The Iwagakure ninja, who summoned the clay giant to hold him back, appeared younger than him. Yet Akimichi Chodai recognized him at first glance.

Kitsuchi!

The son of Tsuchikage Onoki!

He was one of Iwagakure's top-tier fighters. Though he rarely made a move, his strength was undeniable. Under his leadership, Iwagakure had eliminated several Konoha supply points, inflicting significant losses.

Kitsuchi was a powerful, calm, and composed shinobi—a highly competent warrior and battlefield commander.

On the Konoha-Iwagakure frontlines, aside from Orochimaru and Namikaze Minato, few could match Kitsuchi in raw strength.

This made Kitsuchi-led Iwagakure squads nearly unstoppable within Konoha territory. His cautious and meticulous approach allowed him to evade numerous traps set by Konoha effortlessly.

It could be said that Iwagakure held the upper hand in the war against Konoha. Aside from Konoha being stretched thin across multiple fronts, Iwagakure had powerful assets like Kitsuchi and commanders of exceptional skill, such as Higashi Shibito.

If not for being enhanced by Lord Orochimaru using the Hōgyoku, even as a jōnin, Akimichi Chodai wouldn't dare compare his strength to Kitsuchi's after witnessing his abilities firsthand.

But now, there was no need for Chodai to fight Kitsuchi to the death. His role was simple—act as a shield to block the opponent and leave the rest to his comrades.

If they could stop Kitsuchi here, it would undoubtedly deal a devastating blow to Iwagakure. This might even relieve some of the pressure on Konoha's rear lines.

"Gari from the Explosion Corps, huh?"

Hyūga Ran stared at the Iwagakure ninja blocking his path to aid Akimichi Chodai. He recognized the figure immediately, and his mind quickly connected the dots about the Explosion Corps and their infamous member, Gari.

A ninja with the Explosion Release kekkei genkai! Known for his devastating punches that could make anyone explode on contact. For most shinobi, getting too close to such an opponent was a nightmare.

But Hyūga Ran wasn't like most shinobi.

The Hyūga clan had never feared close-quarters combat. In fact, they excelled at it. 

When it came to hand-to-hand combat, the Hyūga clan's techniques were among the most elite in the shinobi world! 

Kumogakure, famous for dominating with taijutsu, had long been at the mercy of the Byakugan. 

Even Kumogakure's jōnin often had no choice but to retreat when facing the Byakugan.

The Kaguya clan, known for their Taijutsu, was much the same in this regard.

"A branch family member of the Hyūga clan?" Gari scrutinized Hyūga Ran, trying to guess his identity.

During wartime, even ninja clans like the Hyūga needed to send their members to the battlefield. This was also the best opportunity for other villages to kill Hyūga clan members and attempt to acquire the Byakugan.

However, due to the harsh realities of war, encountering members of the Hyūga's main house was rare. Even if one did meet them, they would often be surrounded by branch family members acting as their guards.

In front of him was Hinata Ran, who was unaccompanied and lacked the protection of the Hyuga clan's guards. Immediately, in Gari's mind, he was categorized as part of the branch family.

Gari knew about the Hyuga's Gentle Fist, but he wasn't afraid.

Explosion Release: Land Mine Fist!

Gari swung his fist toward Hinata Ran. However, his hand, wrapped in chakra, gently maneuvered around his punch and lightly tapped his wrist.

Gari immediately felt his punch turn limp. The power gathered in his fist became uncontrollable, deflating like a balloon losing air.

Hinata Ran closed in, her fingers tapping repeatedly on Gari's body. In the end, one powerful strike caused Gari's body to explode into a pile of soft, mushy earth.

Earth Clone!

Though confident in his Kekkei Genkai, Gari, aware of the power of the Hyuga's Gentle Fist, didn't let his confidence lead him to recklessness. Instead, he used an Earth Clone to cautiously test the power of Hinata Ran's Gentle Fist.

Watching the limp Earth Clone fall, Gari slowly rose from the ground, his expression serious. There was no doubt—the Hyuga's Gentle Fist seemed to have an advantage over him.

His Explosion Release needed to hit something to trigger an explosion. However, the Hyuga's Byakugan could observe his movements in advance, attacking him after he struck, always getting the first move.

With the Byakugan's assistance, the Gentle Fist could target his chakra pathways and chakra points, preventing him from refining his chakra properly.

A ninja without the ability to use chakra, even one with a Kekkei Genkai, would only be a helpless lamb awaiting slaughter.

It seemed that the path to close combat was blocked.

As Gari closely observed Hinata Ran's movements, his mind was racing, trying to think of a way to counter her attacks.

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